Ancient Runes
by Rose Starre
Summary: The full moon has been proved to have a certain effect on dragons, making aggressive ones calm and vice versa. However, Toothless hasn't shown much reaction to the full moon. But, on the eve of the rare blue moon, Toothless begins to act strangely and Hiccup decides to figure out what is wrong. (Takes place not long after the events of HTTYD 2. Contains spoilers.)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own nothing mentioned within this story.**

It has been two months after the defeat of Drago Bludvist and his Bewilderbeast. Berk is almost completely repaired after the fierce battle. Things are going well. But, something seems to be wrong with Toothless.

The Night Fury has been pacing and trying to take off by himself all day, causing Hiccup much worry. Finally, he decides to go to Astrid. She always seems to know what the matter is whenever Stormfly acts up. "Something's up with Toothless," he says as he approaches her.

"What makes you say that?" Astrid asks.

"He's been trying to fly on his own all day," Hiccup explains. "He usually goes to me whenever he wants to fly."

"Do you think it has something to do with the full moon tomorrow night?" Astrid asks after a minute of thought.

"It can't be," Hiccup answers. "He never acts up during the full moon."

"But tomorrow night is the blue moon," Astrid points out. "Maybe he only reacts to that."

"Maybe," Hiccup replies. "I'll go fly him now. Maybe that'll satisfy him."

XxXxX

As they soar through the air, Hiccup notes that Toothless insists on traveling north. He snarls almost savagely whenever Hiccup tries to turn him back south. So, the chief decides to let his dragon have free rein.

They fly north for a long time. Even as the sun sets, Toothless refuses to go back or land. In fact, he presses onwards at an even faster pace. "What's the matter with you, bud?" Hiccup asks for about the hundredth time. Again, the Night Fury doesn't answer.

Looking around, Hiccup realizes that they have left the isle of Berk behind. He begins to wonder how long they will fly before Toothless reaches whatever destination he has in mind. It won't be long before Astrid will begin to worry about him, if she hasn't begun to already.

After quite a few hours, Toothless finally allows a landing. Almost immediately, he lies down and curls his tail over his eyes, clearly intending to sleep. Hiccup shrugs and also lies down a short distance from the Night Fury. _I hope Astrid knows that I'm safe,_ he thinks as he also falls asleep.

XxXxX

"I'm not sure if he's safe," Astrid sobs. She has just returned from a long search of the entire Island of Berk and is distraught over the empty results. Even Stormfly seems upset.

"Hiccup is strong," Valka says soothingly. "Wherever he is, he is safe." After a few minutes of silence, she tells the distressed youth, "You should go to sleep. We will go to find him in the morning."

After Astrid leaves, Valka looks up at the stars. She sees Cloudjumper's faint silhouette against the far-off pinpricks of light, searching for her son. "I never wished to lose you again," she whispers before heading to bed. "I hope that you are safe, my son."


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I still own nothing.**

The next morning, when Hiccup woke up, he realized that Toothless had disappeared. Sitting up suddenly, he looked around, hoping to catch at least a glimpse of the Night Fury. He had no such luck.

After wandering around for a few minutes, Hiccup sat back down, rather confused. It wasn't like Toothless to wander off in the middle of the night and not return before morning. Especially not in unfamiliar territory. _He can't fly by himself,_ Hiccup reasoned. _He couldn't have gone far._

So, Hiccup set off in search of his dragon. Wandering very far from where he'd spent the night, he left no place unsearched. But, there was still no sign of Toothless. In fact, he was just about to give up, when he saw claw marks in the ground. Those claw marks definitely belonged to Toothless, so he began to follow them.

Some time later, Hiccup finally came across his dragon. "Toothless!" He cried. "There you are!" Running up to the Night Fury, he began rambling on about how he should never leave camp while in unfamiliar territory.

_But,_ Toothless thought, _this isn't unfamiliar territory._ He tried to tell Hiccup this, but the viking was unable to understand. _I suppose it would be best to show him, _Toothless concluded, indicating to Hiccup that he wanted to fly him somewhere.

Hiccup clambered into the saddle, uncertain of what Toothless wanted to show him. As the Night Fury leapt into the air, Hiccup caught a glimpse of something dark streaking across the sky. _Could it be?_ he thought in awe.

XxXxX

"Any luck?" Astrid asked as Cloudjumper pulled up alongside Stormfly. They had been searching all morning, even making the precaution of alerting Snotlout, Fishlegs, and the twins to Hiccup's sudden disappearance.

"No," Valka answered. "How about you?"

"Not even a sighting," Astrid sighed.

Valka thought for a few moments. "Perhaps he has left Berk," she suggested.

"He would have told me," Astrid protested.

"It will not harm anyone to check," Valka noted. "Come, child, we shall find him. Even if we have to search the ends of the earth." The two women spurred their dragons onward and continued their search.

_On a side note, I'm sorry about how radically short these chapters are. I'll try to make them longer in the future._


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, however much I wish I do.**

Toothless heard the sharp intake of breath behind him as a beautiful field of wildflowers came into view. "How long have you known about this?" Hiccup asked.

Grinning, Toothless unveiled a second surprise. "As long as I've been alive," he said in a low, rough voice. He chuckled at the silence that answered him, knowing that his rider had been completely taken off guard by the sudden proclamation.

"Y-you can t-talk?" Hiccup stammered after a few minutes of silent flying, obviously in shock.

"You aren't supposed to know," Toothless said, sounding almost apologetic. "Speech is the most secret of a dragon's abilities. It is why we're able to understand you."

"That's crazy!" Hiccup cried. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"Like I said," Toothless calmly explained, "It's the most secret of our abilities. You are the only human that knows."

"Anything else I should know?" Hiccup enquired after a short pause.

"I'm not the only Night Fury," Toothless said, gesturing to the airspace around them. As if on cue, a few other Night Furies slowed down, becoming more than blurred streaks in the sky.

"There are more of you?" Hiccup breathed, watching the other dragons' remarkable maneuvers.

"Yeah," Toothless replied. "We're a dying breed, but we're still here."

"Now, as for why I brought you here," the Night Fury explained, "During the blue moon, the Night Furies gather on the Moonlit Isle to celebrate. The Night of the Blue Moon is regarded as the most sacred ceremony among Night Furies. You should consider yourself lucky to be able to witness it."

"No problem," Hiccup said quietly, still mesmerized by the fact that Toothless was, in fact, not alone, not to mention his speech.

XxXxX

"I don't think there's anything more than water this way," Astrid sighed. "We should turn back."

"Don't you want to find Hiccup?" Valka asked.

"Yes," Astrid said. "But, there's nothing but water and ice to the North of Berk."

"Cloudjumper knows what he is doing," Valka proclaimed shortly. "He smells dragons. We must be getting close."

Almost as soon as Valka said this, Stormfly balked in midair, obviously wanting to turn around. "Whoa, Stormfly!" Astrid exclaimed. "What's the matter?"

"She must smell the dragons as well," Valka explained, bringing Cloudjumper to a halt mid-flight. "Calm her down quickly," she instructed. "We are very close."

The island that Toothless had earlier called "the Moonlit Isle" came into view. "There is where the dragons are," Valka pointed out. "Let's land there." Obeying some unspoken command, Cloudjumper began to soar towards a specific spot on the island.

"I hope this is where Hiccup is…" Astrid muttered as she steered Stormfly in the direction of the island.


End file.
